King Ranch comes to mind. Many bowhunters stalk and kill bucks on the ground on that ranch. The old Welder Cameron was like that in the 80's and 90's and still some pastures were like that into the 2000's with deer that would stand around you at 20 yards.

The lease is on a ranch with a bunch of mom cows and calves, and I know the deer don't habitually stay on the lease they come in from neighboring properties or along the creek beds, though they do bed down on the lease at times.

So I think these deer have very little interaction with people. This is not a state park where people feed the deer all the time.

I completely agree. The ranch I hunt has supposedly not been hunted in a while before I got on it (couple years, so chances are most of the deer were not alive last time it was hunted) and the feeder pens have been up for 16 months and the only deer we shot last year were single doe...

The rest of the deer around don't know to be afraid from my feed pens at least, and probably don't really know human scent is "bad".

I plan to change that this year

Testing the scent theory. Im out at ny stand right now, upwind of my feeder by 15 yards. No shower and no scent lock clothing. I just peeed on the ground 20 yards upwind of my feeder.

Time will tell whose theory is better. If i get a downwind shot i concede that scent proofing is not worth it...i hope im wrong, i need meat

When iam on my way to the stand I find a wet cow patty and step in it or I find a cedar bush and just kinda jump in it and wallar around in it like a big bull . But yea I think the best thing is just hunt the wind.

Poor testing methods, try mine...

Wrap fresh dog droppings in your best scent lock material, spray it with your best spray and stick it under your wife's side of the bed. Let me know how well that worked

I know this sounds strage, but my father leaves a sweaty shirt in his stand every summer after we clean up at the deer lease. His thinking behind it is the deer get use to his scent and haven't been shot at, so they are calmer. Must work cause he always sees deer and shoots most of them with in 40 yrds. We do hunt doss area.

Actually, that's an interesting theory/practice. I think resident deer on a particular piece of property become accustomed to their surroundings over time whether its vehicle traffic, other critters, or intervention by humans. However, I too subscribe to the "wind is my friend" philosophy and always try to keep it in my favor.

I shower with scent free soap and use scent free deodarant. I also dont put on my hunting clothes until I get to the area to hunt. I keep my clothes in scent lock plastic bags after washing and drying everything with scent eleminator detergent and dryer sheets. I also store the clothes after spraying with autumn or dirt scent spray. Masking my scent has worked because so far the only time deer have run off is when I made a sound or they saw me and those times was when I was up wind of them and on the ground.

As for me I use scent control products along with the wind. Also, I use a cover scent that is nature to the area I'm hunting

I just hunt the wind, that's all. If the wind is bad I hunt a different stand or I don't go.

Cow patties are my best friend when bow hunting.

I use scent free detergent to wash clothes and hang on clothes line to dry then pack in bag with cedar branch!!! Wash with scent free soap and use scent away spray when I go out and hunt the wind!!!

obviously hunting the wind trumps all, but my contention is that you cannot guarantee where the deer will come from everytime you hunt, if you can afford some "scent control" and/or cover scent, why not? its not going to hurt, it might work just enough to help that one time you need it.

The wind. End of story. If it makes you feel better, spend 4 or 5 hundred bucks on Scent Control products, but if you don't pay attention to the wind, you can be in a plastic bubble and it won't matter.

I know the wind is important but I can only hunt a few days a year and the wind is out of my control. I want to make the best out of the few days of the season I actually get to hunt.

Ive heard a few guys talk about smoking their clothes over a campfire, any thoughts on that?

stay out of the area at least a month before the season starts..fill the feeders..camera cards etc on the last
day of the hunt..and hunt tha wind...

well i have to say, i had 1 doe come in @15 yards downwind of me last night. she must have really wanted that corn because even after looking up at me she went after it anyway. i guess the desire for corn trumps scent anyday. up in new york where baiting is illegal, she would have been gone, or never come in at all.

1) Hunt the wind. Period.

2) If you can't position yourself down wind, try to get up high where the wind/thermals carry your scent above the deer. I've got a tripod that is 15' higher than the level the deer are at. Most of the time I can hunt a bad wind and get away with it because I'm up high.

3) If you can't do #1 or #2, minimize your scent with techniques above, and hope you get lucky. I wash my stuff in scent-free detergent, shower with scent-free soap, and try not to let my clothes get to funky, but I always hope I don't have to rely on that due to #1 and #2.

thats all i am saying, but you still cant control where the deer come from, if one comes in downwind i would rather have at least tried to control my scent and get lucky than be sitting up there in Tide washed clothes and Axe deoderant.

wish i knew how to position my stands so the deer come in downwind every single time. guess i could hunt backed up to a lake....or a cliff....or the great wall....or a HF......

I do wash hunting clothes with scent free detergent just because I have to wash them so I figure may as well. Either that or use ALL Fresh Scent Flowers or whatever the wife buys. I think the deer is going to smell you but it's possible (10%?) they may think you are further away then you are. I think you have to hunt the wind anything downwind is going to bust you 80 to 90% of the time.

Two years ago I experience the perfect experiment and got busted three times by the same doe and two fawns and watched it happen real time.

They were crossing - my left to right - CRP downwind of me stiff 15 mph wind. Cold day.
They were Calm just walking then the doe hit my scent stopped like she had hit a brick wall.
This was 150 yards downwind.
She got nervous, fawns behind her nervous she backed up out of my scent and worked her way closer tried to cross again at 110 yards. SAME thing happened and she wouldn't cross that scent.
Backed up worked her way CLoser tried to cross the scent again but at about 80 yards this time they turned and fled. Tails flagging. Back the way they had come.

I think the scent got stronger the closer she got and at 70 - 80 yards she'd had enough.
I was showered and wearing 'scent free' hunting clothes..

If they had been in timber the same thing would have happened but I would have never known.